Within many companies, processing and reporting expenses is still a time-consuming task for both employees and the financial managers.

This also applies to the local government in the city of Mechelen, but that is all set to change. The city is the first local government in Europe that will use the time-saving application Xpenditure by Belfius, developed by the Belgian company Cardwise.

The app allows users to take a picture of receipts, reads out all relevant data such as merchant, amount, date, currency, and this data is automatically stored in the online account of the user. Through the online account, a user can manage and report the expenses towards the financial manager.

“We have a better view on our spending and there’s less risk for errors,” says Walter Schroons, Mechelen’s Financial Counsellor.

“The app was originally developed for SME’s, but it’s also popular within larger companies. Recently, VMMA started using Xpenditure to monitor and control employee expenses. The city of Mechelen is the first local government to start digitizing receipts,” says co-founder Wim Derkinderen.

As a government it’s important to be transparent and communicate when it comes to finances and budgets. Applications like Xpenditure make it possible to report in real-time, per project, category, employee or expense type. The city of Mechelen is proud to be the first government to take this step.